Buying Advice Looking at a cheap?? TC29 need advice!

[jinman]

I don't think I'd walk away just yet. People buy old tractors for $4000 to $5000 everyday with no record of any use or maintenance. That's a 6-yr old tractor for much less than half of it's original price. Before you walk away, can you find someone locally to go look at the tractor with you? That's what I'd do. Just because a tractor has set out doesn't mean it has been abused. So far, you mentioned the loader pivot points were a little loose and the front axle was low on oil. Those two things alone would not make me walk away from this deal. The steering wheel lock problem is something that is common and may be able to be fixed with simple maintenance. Otherwise, work some deal with the dealer. Shiny in a tractor is not worth much in my opinion. 1700 hours is a drop in the bucket .

I think you should step back and evaluate exactly what you would be happy with. If you don't feel good about a deal, then you probably never will. From my viewpoint, this is not a walk-away deal...yet.

 

[jbrumberg]

Dafixer:

jinman has a point. Now that I think about it most people would have walked away from the used, beat up Ford 1100 4WD I bought over 20 years ago. It served me well for 20 years and 1000+ hours of use before I traded it in. The "29's" are nice tractors. Jay

 

[dqdave1]

You mentioned you talked with previous owner. Call him again and ask how he maintained it. How often he used FEL. Tell him to be honest with you; any issues with it that he knows of. If he changed engine oil and hydro fluid on a schedule of some type it should be ok. Have dealer do a 300 hour maintainance change. Front axle a little low is no big deal; make sure axles are not leaking. Have dealer change the pins and any replaceable bushing in loader.
I think that if the fluids are changed, filters replaced ( air, fuel, oil) and all grease fittings greased, you may have a keeper. I assume the dealer is honest and will not cheat on service. Tilt wheel cylinder is stuck; have dealer free it up or change the cylinder ( $80.00 approx.).
The sale would depend on what the old owner told me.
PS: Black oil is common on a diesel !

 

[Dafixer]

Well, my next move is to look at the tractor in good weather. I'll also talk to the previous owner again about service. Unfortunately, some people think that no maintenance is good maintenance. The only time I have seen the tractor was when it was cold and rainy.
The dealership is closed until Monday, so I think a closer look then. I'm a motorcycle mechanic by trade, so I'm not too intimidated by mechanical work; however, I'm looking for a working tractor, not a tractor that needs a lot of working on! My knowledge of tractors is pretty feeble, so I don't want to get in over my head on the first one!

 

[daTeacha]

First of all, welcome to the board! Ask a lot of questions here and don't be in too much of a hurry with your purchase. There are other tractors out there. Better to pass up a bargain than to get stuck with some regrets. Find out how long the thing has been on the dealer's lot. The fact that it's kind of dull might be scaring people off and making the dealer willing to work more on the price.

Ask the dealer how much he wants to fix the obvious faults like the steering wheel cylinder and maybe the FEL pivot pins. See if you can get him to do that cheaply or included in the price, plus a 300 hour interval service, which is pretty comprehensive and includes all your fluids and filters. My 50 hour service on my DX29 cost me a fair amount -- $75 (+/-) just in filters. Make sure he includes the hydraulic fluid which brings $10 per gallon off the shelf.

If he really wants to sell it, maybe he'll give you a 100 hour warranty on the working parts. I never heard of such a thing on a tractor, but asking about it would give you an indication of what the dealer thought of the tractor and owner. Was it purchased there new? I paid over double that figure for my DX29 last spring and it's set up similarly. 1700 hours alone isn't much. The tractor should be good for 6 or 7000 easily. Check with the PO to see if he changed the oil by the hours or the calendar. Ask him about leaks and such. The one new tire is probably from a puncture and not a cause for concern.

It has a cruise control feature which should lock the throttle at a set speed when mowing long stretches, but that's no big deal unless you need it. I never use mine. Check the steering for tightness and lack of play, but the tilt/telescope feature having problems is fairly common. It results from people not moving the wheel and the hydraulic cylinder going bad from lack of movement.

As far as the bush hogging, a lot depends on what kind of stuff you want to mow. You would want at least a 5 foot hog behind that machine, and a 6 footer wouldn't be bad if you weren't in a hurry and weren't hogging out a woods or something. I ran a 4 footer behind a 16 hp Kubota through some pretty impressive stuff -- multiflora rose about 6 or 7 feet high and thick enough to keep the entire tractor off the ground, for example. It just depends on how much time you have.

Keep us advised of your progress. If you decide to get it, this board will be a good source of helpful hints when you start messing with it.

 

[Doc_Bob]

Ask the delaer if he will let you run it for 3 hours on your land for a demo. Have him drop it off when it is convenient for him. How far would he have to bring it? That will tell you what you need to know.
Bob

 

[Dafixer]

Ask the delaer if he will let you run it for 3 hours on your land for a demo. Have him drop it off when it is convenient for him. How far would he have to bring it? That will tell you what you need to know.
Bob

That's a good idea! The dealer is only 10 miles away or so. I'm going to go up there today to take another look. I'll run the demo idea by the sales guy.

 

[Turbys_1700]

That seems high but it will probably bring it. I would look at new 0% finance options on a new unit just to compare. If you are financing this may be a better deal. If you're buying out right then it is not as important.

The idea of trying it out is a good one. The dealer may want a deposit that would be used to offset the sell price if you decide to buy. I don't know if they will let you try her out or not. It's hit or miss with some of these dealers.

Good luck. It the unit is not in need of major repair you may have a decent deal.

 

[Doc_Bob]

That's a good idea! The dealer is only 10 miles away or so. I'm going to go up there today to take another look. I'll run the demo idea by the sales guy.

Great! 3 hours running it will tell you alot about the tractor. Good luck and I hope the dealer sees the wisdom of this sales technique.
Bob

 

[jinman]

That's a good idea! The dealer is only 10 miles away or so. I'm going to go up there today to take another look. I'll run the demo idea by the sales guy.

I hope you are successful with the demo; however, if the salesman knows you are considering a new tractor, he may be slow to let you "borrow" the used tractor. It depends on which he will make the most money. If he can make more money on a new tractor, he may try to negotiate you toward that sale. You can't blame him for that.